Service to one religion only?
Service to one religion only?
From Republika
President Abdurrahman Wahid (or Gus Dur) in his dialog with figures of the Hindu religion in Denpasar on Oct. 24, 1999 said that the ministry of religious affairs had been made a place where some people sought power and others sold religious services and faiths. It seems as if the ministry of religious affairs had become a market place where faiths and religious services were the commodities to be traded. Also, until now it seems as if this ministry were intended only for only one religion, the president said.
In the writer's opinion, Gus Dur's criticism or more exactly, allegation, was exaggerated and made-up, especially the allegation that the ministry of religious affairs had served one religion only (obviously it means Islam, here). As a pensioner of this ministry with 40 years of dedication, the writer knows full well that this ministry fosters and serves the five religions legally sanctioned by the government, namely Islam, Protestant Christianity, Catholicism, Hinduism and Buddhism. It is not right that it is concerned only with one religion.
The structure of the ministry at the central level reveals this fact and this is reflected also in the regional offices. At the central level, there are five directorates general i.e. Directorates General of Islam and Haj Pilgrimage Affairs, Institutionalization and Religious Judicature, Protestant, Catholic and Hindu and Buddha. Every directorate general comprises a number of directorates and what is found at the central level will also be reflected in the regions (provinces, districts, municipalities and so forth).
Not all regional offices at provinces and offices of the ministry of religious affairs in districts/municipalities in Indonesia are headed by Muslims. In a region where Muslims are not predominant, such as Bali, for example, the head of the regional office and the head of the office of the ministry of religious affairs in a district/municipality is headed by a Hindu although many of the employees are Muslims. In East Nusa Tenggara these offices are headed by Catholics while in Irian Jaya by Protestant Christians. In East Timor, these offices used to be headed by Catholics. So, it is obvious that the ministry of religious affairs protects and serves the believers of the five official religions in Indonesia.
The president is absolutely wrong to allege that the ministry of religious affairs serves one religion only or that it is the ministry for one religion (Islam) only because the facts speak otherwise. Maybe the president has received information from an incorrect source or perhaps he has made the statement in order to win sympathy from believers of other religions in Indonesia. Yet, he should not have discredited Muslims, should he? Perhaps Gus Dur sees that every year the government (in this case the ministry of religious affairs, is very busy attending to people wishing to embark on their haj pilgrimage so that it seems as if this ministry only attended to Muslims only. It must be understood, in this respect, that the obligation to go on the haj pilgrimage or such things can be found among Muslims, and not among believers of other religions.
Besides, the ministry of religious affairs has always fostered and maintained a harmonious ties among people of different religions in Indonesia by means of, among other things, organizing religious conferences intended to foster mutual understanding and mutual respect among people of different creeds.
HM YAHYA
Pekanbaru, Riau